No. 245: Rip Tides, sickle cell, safe printing and what to drink in the tub

September 28, 2017

It’s Sept. 27, on which William the Conqueror set sail from France to kick butt at the Battle of Hastings. The victorious Normans hung around long enough to add more than 10,000 words to the English vocabulary, including the words for most cooked meat. Not sheep, swine or cow, in other words, but mutton, pork and beef.

Welcome new readers Anthony, Dave, Sophia, Kendra and, appropriately, Lisa from the UK. Happy to have you all aboard.

Eastern promises: Enthusiasm for Shark Tank-like pitch events rolls into the Hamptons on Nov. 24 with “RipTide: Sink or Swim,” an entrepreneurs-meets-investors contest for East End visionaries. Upwards of $250,000 is up for grabs in the first pitch-a-thon hosted by i-Hamptons creator Ashley Heather, who has a master plan for East-of-Medford innovation. Potential presenters have until Oct. 15 to throw their hats into “RipTide’s” ring. More here.

Granted: Cohen Children’s Medical Center will share $8.5 million in funding for a study targeting children with sickle cell disease.

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WHAT WE’RE READING

12 Steps not required: Annum Health, a NYC startup that’s a digital alternative to Alcoholics Anonymous, is on a mission to help the 16 million Americans suffering from alcohol-use disorder.Instead of having to visit a clinic, participants work with their team – a doctor, therapist and coach – over their mobile phone, maximizing privacy and convenience, making it easier for someone to stay engaged long enough to change their ways, and attractive enough for employers to cover the cost of service.

From GPS to the Internet: Some of the most impactful technologies of the last century were driven by U.S. military investments. DoD leaders want to continue that tradition through a new Boston-based accelerator program run by Techstars that will mentor early-stage companies developing autonomous technologies that have applications in defense and the private sector, such as sensors, processors and security software for drones.

Food for thought: Global investment in agtech and food startups totaled $4.4 billion in 369 deals during the first six months of the year, bucking the investment declines in the sector last year, according to a report by AgFunder.

Trying a new recipe: Nestle, the world’s largest food and drinks company, set a target for profit margin growth for the first time. Until now, it has set sales targets. The Swiss company has been under pressure from activist investor Daniel Loeb to shake up its “old ways,” proposing a margin target of 18 to 20 percent by 2020. (Glad he’s not an Innovate investor!)

How to succeed in business: It’s no secret that tech hubs like San Jose and Seattle are home to some of the highest-paying tech jobs in the country, but a new report by the Economic Innovation Group shows just how stark the economic divide is between tech hubs and the rest of the country.

Overall, EIG found that the most prosperous communities tend to be younger (many of them are suburban communities that have sprung up next to large major metropolitan areas), have a diversified economy, are close to large institutions of research, have well-maintained physical infrastructure that allows them to transport goods and services easily, and have high rates of immigration.

RECENT FUNDING

+ Jopwell: the recruiting platform focused on diversity, has raised a $7.5 million Series A round from investors that include Y Combinator, Joe Montana and Magic Johnson Enterprises.

+ SpringWorks: a NYC-based medicines company dedicated to developing innovative new treatments for underserved patient communities, completed a $103 million Series A financing led by Bain Life Sciences, Bain Double Impact, OrbiMed, Pfizer and LifeArc.

+ Boost: a NY-based technology-enabled insurtech development platform provider, raised $3 million in funding led by Norwest Venture Partners with participation from IA Capital Group, Greycroft Partners and State National Cos.
+ IsoPlexis: a Connecticut-based life science company raised $13.5 million in its Series B financing round led by Spring Mountain Capital, participation from Connecticut Innovations, North Sound and Ironwood.

BELOW THE FOLD

But wait: Doomsayer David Meade, who predicted the world would end last weekend, has updated. It’s now all over Oct. 15.

The Maverick Food Porn Poet: Anthony Bourdain eats his way across the world as the host of CNN’s Parts Unknown, but he doesn’t eat in restaurants on vacation. Really.